Known lovingly by fans as Jonghyun, the 27-year-old artist committed suicide on December 18 after a constant feeling of having been consumed by the world around him ("I was broken from the inside…the life of fame was never meant for me," he allegedly wrote in a suicide note). And in a new cover interview with Billboard, BTS said the news devastated them, and sent shockwaves through the K-Pop community.

"We went to give our condolences that morning. I couldn’t sleep at all that night. It was so shocking, because we had seen him so often at events. He was so successful," BTS member RM said, while fellow BTS member Suga said he hopes Jonghyun's death will inspire more compassion within the industry.

"I really want to say that everyone in the world is lonely and everyone is sad, and if we know that everyone is suffering and lonely, I hope we can create an environment where we can ask for help, and say things are hard when they’re hard, and say that we miss someone when we miss them,” he said.

“This decision is something that Jonghyun would want from us, and I believe that it's the most SHINee-like thing to do, to keep our promise to the fans and put on great performances," he said, according to a Billboard translation.